Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder / Mandi Wright/Detroit Free Press

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Voters won't have to check a box affirming that they're U.S. citizens when they go to vote in the future.

But there will be a sentence on ballot applications affirming U.S. citizenship that every voter will have to sign before they get a ballot.

After vetoing similar legislation in July, Gov. Rick Snyder signed a bill late Friday that requires the citizenship affirmation to be included on ballot applications.

The amendment was included in a separate bill at about 2:30 a.m. on Dec. 14 in the final hours of legislature's lame duck session.

Secretary of State Ruth Johnson added the check box on ballot applications in February and the legislature passed a bill allowing her to do that later that spring. But Snyder vetoed the bill in July, saying it would create voter confusion. The check box still appeared on ballot applications for the August primary.

A federal ordered Johnson to stop the practice before the Nov. 6 election.

The change now includes an opening statement on applications that declares citizenship, alleviating confusion and removing the need for a separate citizenship checkbox, Snyder said in a statement released late Friday.

When the bill passed, Johnson said it was one more step in ensuring voting integrity.

"Together, we came up with common-sense solutions to ensure only qualified voters cast ballots," she said.

But voting rights advocates said the issue was addressing a problem that didn't exist since the number of non-citizens voting has been miniscule.

"By flip-flopping and signing a bill he previously vetoed, Gov. Snyder has proven that he’s just a typical Lansing politician,” said Zack Pohl, executive director of Progress Michigan in a statement released Friday night. “It’s clear Lansing Republicans are trying to manipulate our election system for their own benefit, because they don’t like what the voters have to say. It’s wrong to pass laws for political gain that block some eligible Americans from voting, denying them the opportunity to participate equally in our democracy."